The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has urged West African leaders to dismantle trade barriers, reduce costs, and think regionally to unlock the subregion’s $500 billion economic potential and secure prosperity for its young and growing population.

Speaking at the West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) held at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja, Okonjo-Iweala said West Africa was well-positioned to become a competitive economic bloc if it prioritised integration, built value chains, and embraced innovation and manufacturing.

“At this pivotal moment for our region, you have come together to unlock trade and investment opportunities to drive growth and job creation for West Africa’s nearly 460 million people — half of them under the age of 18.

“We have so much to build on. A 500 billion dollar regional economy with a dynamic entrepreneurial population and rich critical mineral and energy resources, West Africa’s creative industries are hot and not just at home,” she said on Saturday.

Describing the region as “rich in critical mineral and energy resources”, she noted that West Africa’s creative industries were thriving and increasingly visible on the global stage — from music to literature, fashion, and food.

She said, “Wherever I travel, I increasingly encounter the region’s cultural exports. Finance and agriculture are also starting to come together — as shown by Côte d’Ivoire’s new commodities exchange, which could become a force for transparent markets, higher incomes, and reduced volatility for agricultural producers.”

Act Collectively To Build Economic Strength

While praising ECOWAS for being the first bloc to support her candidacy for the WTO leadership, Okonjo-Iweala stressed that the time had come for member states to act collectively to build regional economic strength.

“If each of our countries works alone, it is unlikely that we will be able to build efficient value chains or attract the investment we need,” the WTO DG said.

“However, if ECOWAS can think in terms of subregional value chains and markets, our economies become bigger and more attractive to investors.”

She identified pharmaceutical manufacturing as a promising sector, referencing the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic as a wake-up call for African nations to build capacity.

“Senegal’s Institut Pasteur de Dakar is a potential hub for vaccine production. Other parts of the pharmaceutical ecosystem — research, production — can be developed in countries like Nigeria, where efforts are already underway,” she said.

Okonjo-Iweala also called for harnessing solar and wind energy to power local processing of critical minerals, while highlighting the potential for West Africa to move up the electric value chain — including battery components and automobile manufacturing.

The former Nigerian minister said, “In the services space, companies like Jumia and Flutterwave have already started to operate across borders, showing the way for others. We can also boost intra-regional tourism and trade driven by cultural industries.”

Tackling Longstanding Barriers

However, she warned that achieving these goals would require tackling longstanding structural barriers.

“To build regional value chains, we need to address tariff and non-tariff frictions, and close the physical, regulatory, and digital infrastructure gaps that have historically held back trade in West Africa. Trade costs here remain among the highest in the world,” she said.

She urged leaders to fully implement the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and ECOWAS-wide integration, adding that the WAES summit offers an “unparalleled platform” to advance such solutions.

“Let us seize this opportunity to come together in common purpose, anchored by our rich cultural heritage, and build a West Africa where our young people find boundless opportunities for a better future,” she said.

Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu, who convened the summit in his capacity as Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, also called for deeper regional value chains and an end to what he described as “pit-to-port” economic dependency — the export of unprocessed raw materials.

“The era of warm pit to the port must end. We must turn our mineral wealth into domestic economic value, jobs, technology, and manufacturing,” Tinubu said.

He warned that intra-regional trade within West Africa still accounts for less than 10 per cent, attributing this to poor coordination rather than a lack of political will.

The summit, which precedes the 67th Ordinary Session of ECOWAS scheduled for Sunday, aimed to deepen economic integration and enhance trade and investment cooperation across the subregion.

Presidents from Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, The Gambia, Benin, Togo, and Guinea-Bissau participated in the summit, alongside ministers of finance, trade, infrastructure, and foreign affairs from ECOWAS Member States.

Also in attendance were representatives from key regional economic bodies, including the West African Monetary Agency (WAMA), West African Monetary Institute (WAMI), ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), and the AfCFTA Secretariat.

Private sector leaders, development partners, and policy experts also took part, with expectations high for actionable outcomes that can fast-track West Africa’s integration agenda — regarded as critical to regional peace, security, and shared prosperity.

Tinubu also extended invitations to the Alliance of Sahel States and Mauritania, in a show of inclusivity and continued regional engagement. (Channels TV)